It now is commonly known in the art of crimped electrical terminals to provide many types of crimpable terminals on a continuous tape of thin material such as plastic. The terminals are suitably secured to the tape in a manner such that they can be fed to a crimping apparatus, and the leading terminal of the tape is crimped onto a wire after which it is removed from the tape. The present invention relates to an improved applicator for crimping electrical terminals on such a tape and particularly to an improved tape feeding means.
A known type of electrical terminal applicator includes an applicator ram drivable by a press ram through a working stroke towards, and a return stroke away from, a crimping anvil. The applicator ram has a first crimping die for cooperation with the anvil to crimp a first portion of an electrical terminal onto an exposed end of a conductive core of an insulated electrical wire during each working stroke of the applicator ram. The applicator ram has a second crimping die for cooperation with the anvil to crimp a second portion of the terminal onto the insulation of the electrical wire during each working stroke of the applicator ram. The second crimping die is adjustable axially of the applicator ram. Plate means are mounted for angular adjustment about an axis on, and extending lengthwise of, the applicator ram. The plate means selectively interpose first projections between the press ram and the applicator ram to adjust the shut height of the first and second dies, and selectively interpose second projections between the applicator ram and the second crimping die to independently adjust the shut height of the second die.
In this known terminal applicator, as well as other similar tape-feeding applicators, the applicator ram can be considered as being drivable in a first path through its working stroke, and the terminal tape is fed in a second path which intersects the first path of the applicator ram. Tape feeding means are provided for indexing the tape along the second path to sequentially advance a leading uncrimped terminal on the tape in response to reciprocation of the ram. One type of feeding means includes an oscillating feed link or arm, and the feeding link includes a finger for sequentially advancing the tape in response to oscillatory action of the feed link. Such feeding mechanisms usually are limited to terminal tapes which are fairly rigid, such as of metal material, because the feed finger literally engages the tape and pushes it incrementally toward the crimping dies. Such a feed link/feed finger mechanism is not applicable for use with flexible, thin plastic tapes, because the feed finger pushes on the tape in only one place and would tend to buckle or tear the flexible thin plastic material of the tape.
When a terminal applicator is designed for crimping terminals which are carried on these plastic tapes, the tapes typically are fed by means of a rotatable wheel having teeth which engage within a series of slots or indexing apertures positioned lengthwise of the tape. The feeding teeth also may be provided on an endless conveyor-type belt which is trained around a pair of spaced pulley wheels. A problem with toothed wheels or toothed conveyors is that the wheels and pulleys require considerable space within the applicator. Such toothed wheels and/or pulley wheels increase the overall dimensions of the terminal applicator beyond that which is being considered acceptable.
In addition, such rotatable wheels do not readily permit changing the feed stroke. In other words, terminals may be spaced along the plastic tape on a given or conventional pitch (e.g., 0.6 inches). However, if the terminals are too large to be spaced according to that given pitch, heretofore, the terminals were positioned on the plastic tape on a "double pitch" (i.e., 1.2 inches), and the crimp press had to be cycled twice for crimping each individual terminal.
This invention is directed to solving the problems identified above and providing a simple terminal applicator having an improved feeding system employing a very low-profile toothed mechanism, the mechanism also being adjustable to vary the feed stroke thereof to accommodate terminal tapes with different pitches between the terminals.